225 gallon tank

[loismustdie]

getting away from the stand... 6000 GPH flowing through that sump will cause a microbubble issue. I know Rich (Jackson6745) and I have been tossing around the idea of downgrading the return pump from the sump and make up the turnover using Tunze/Vortech/Seio/Closed Loop/Maxi-jet Mod. Have you considered 1400 GPH pump on the sump and the 6000 GPH on a closed loop you can shut down at night?
If you do go with the 6000 GPH pump on the ruturn, do you plan on feeding all 6000 GPH through the SCWD as shown in the diagram? A SCWD cannot handle more than 1400 GPH. They usually fail under less flow than that. You would also be choking 6000 GPH down to a 3/4" line.

 

[samster]

toisek like i stated before its not completed yet, im goin to be placing another sheet of 3/4 on the 75gallon side on the inside to make it 1 n 1/2" on both sides but the center front is my worryin point only -=I

chris scwd wasn't intended to pass like 1500gph i think? didn't plan on using it for 6000gph. Scwd wouldn't be needed if its 6000gph? thats what im afraid of micro bubbles i have micro in the 75 after i changed out the sump to tempory sump and the micro bubbles make the water look dirty looking -=I

and mr Jcurry like i stated i don't really trust it myself, it will hold i know for sure if i fill it up it will hold just not sure how long -=) thats why im tellin people to leave an opinion not to keep saying it won't hold -=D

well the stand is still not done up to my plans yet i was goin to placing another sheet of 3/4" ply to the sides so basically its 1 n 1/2 on each sides of the tank the weight of the top should be well spread out to the sides and back to be more then enough to hold the weight but im not sure if i should place two piece of 3" ply horizontal across the front top by the T brace where the doors cover or should i place 2 vertical ones in the middle of the doors its going to be 4 doors

if you guys really thought anyone would trust 225 on this thing the way it is nows ya must think imma clown -=) if this was the finish product don't u guys think i would have filling up with the ro/di?

Thanks toisek you sound like you know what your talking bout i would like your input on the bracing i wanted the horizontal brace so i could fit equipment and sump in and out but i figgured if the two piece was vertical it might actaully hold more weight then horizontal. My father is a carpenter/contractor who didn't allow me to use 2x4's but from all the work i've built with him i would honestly think 2 pieces of 3/4 stuck together with on the whole side its spreading out more weight down evenlly then on then two 2x4's on each corner. like i stated guys i aint ignorant more feed back

but toisek i think u have and idea of how this stands end process is suppose to look because i could tell u done this before plenty of times
i'd post up a pic for the people who don't understand -=) and LMK please
i preffer them horizonal then vertical for workin space mabe if i decide to upgrade sump later on etc? you know? but i think vertical will hold more weight hope u guys will understand the pic lols its ghetto once again post it up in 5 mins thanks laters~ =)

 

[samster]

Thats what i had in mind of the finish production but not sure still -=) any more wise words ladies and gents? thanks alot!

 

[Tim]

How high is your deck? If I were building my own stand I would make it a bit higher than the regular stands built by the big manufactures,but that is just my opinion.......

 

[samster]

the new stand is 33" high off the floor it just looks shorter compared to old stand because the stand i have on the 75g is 42" high which is directly next to it. I didn't want to build the stand to high because i've already have an issue climbin in at the moment lol gonna be hard to work in the tank and im over 6'2 my arm reaches mabe half way in the tank because of the bracing and total height of 63". and 33" stand 30" tank and 32" canopy so it looks more centered looking

 

[tosiek]

BTW i seen a list of tank sizes and corresponding full weights (water weight) somewhere that i dug up. your looking at close to 3000 lbs for the 220. 180 weighs 2230 roughly in glass. Even with acrylic your still weighing pretty close to that +- 200 lbs. + the LR + the live sand. this monster is gonna weigh alot. Get about 15 people who weight around 200 lbs to stand on that stand if you wanna test it =0)

make sure that stand can support easily 2 tons. thats what your going to be supporting. don't belittle the tank.

Rethinking everything i told u earlier, u might want someone with alot more experience in stand building to give u some advice.

Also think about the surface your installing the tank on. Its an acrylic tank. its not supported like glass (ie. its supported along the outer edges, usually with a raised bottom. ) the middle is going to have to be supported as well, the ply u have now isn't going to cut it without supports under it. Your gonna want to have cross braces under where your tank sits.

i mean i could be wrong, so plz correct me, i could be overengineering everything.

 

[samster]

wha cars do u guys own? do u know most cars are capable of doing 120-160 when topped out? ouR cars sit on rubber ball joints with alil hinge going thru it -=) my cars weigth in over 3000lb. i dunno that all here from what i think is basically common sense, but i do agree with the guys that's tellin me better safe then sorry but hMmms should i build my with a tig welder then? just to be safE? i could jack my car up and place it over the stand and see if the stand fails 1st and flex extremely to much -=) lol better then 15 people lols

when we drop more rocks and sand it takes out more water and i think water would be heavier then rocks n0? alright lets say its 2500lbs would u guys still think 2x4's enough?

TIM? on that customers 240-250 gallon how was that stand built? looks like complete plywood? any info is greatly appreciate thanks

its okays guys don't worry keep throwin in the thoughts as all can see the tank isnt filled with water yet so u guys know im not in a rush for anything, so i'd just keep adding wood till u guys think its enough before i add water -=) i shoulda doubled the ply on top and doubled the ply on the back and doubled the ply on the sides then it would have been 1 n 1/2" all around then would u guys think that would work?

 

[Pseudo]

I say fill that sucker up and dont worry about what everyone else says... Its your tank thread. I wish everyone would let the man build his dream tank the way he wants too without you people jumping down his back.

I dont think you need to keep adding plywood all over the stand. I had a 75g tank on a baby dresser for a year without any problems.

More pics please.

Kasei

 

[regal]

....when we drop more rocks and sand it takes out more water and i think water would be heavier then rocks n0?

When you put the rocks into water, they will displace a certain volume of water. The weight of that water is going to be less than the weight of the rock, otherwise the rocks are going to float instead of sink. Same with sand.

 

[jhale]

the deal with your stand

I built a stand like this for my 120, bravo for not using dimensional lumber. I can't tell you how much I hate that.

The only difference between what I built, and build, is that I double up on the 3/4 ply. before the stand is constructed I laminate (glue) two sheets of plywood together. You would not believe how strong this becomes.
So my top and bottom are double ply, as well as the sides. another big difference is that I do not leave the back open. Leaving an open back makes the stand weak against lateral forces. I make a snug fitting solid 3/4 back and inset it into the stand. I use pocket screws around the whole perimeter of the back, maybe one every 8" to attach it. This will prevent any swaying of the stand and give a huge amount of shear strength. As for the front supports I would feel safe using 2 vertical supports. the horizontal will do little to support that weight. again, make the supports out of 2 sheets of laminated 3/4 ply. I use them to attach the doors to, so I set them at the distance the doors will be.

 

[cali_reef]

when we drop more rocks and sand it takes out more water and i think water would be heavier then rocks n0?

Where did you find rocks that are lighter than water?

Do what you want with the stand, no need to ask for or listen to peeps if you already know what you want to do. 2X4's are not needed if plywood is used properly.

 

[samster]

but i don't trust it myself lols thats the problem!

i dun0 roCKs take up more area of water so if u have a tank filled with rocks its prolly lighter then a full tank filled with water no? -=)

i mean 225 is the largest that ever sat in my living room just wanted to be more safe then sorry we've always used ply in the previous setups but then again this tank is going to hold a pretty large volume of water and from all the large tank stands from others members and members of RC it seems like some have done it with welds some have done it with ply and others have done it with studs, but now everyone 9 out of 10 people say it won't hold so just wanted more of what they think would hold! instead of letting me know it might not hold when im afraid myself -=D

 

[regal]

i dun0 roCKs take up more area of water so if u have a tank filled with rocks its prolly lighter then a full tank filled with water no? -=)

Once again, NO!!

The rocks take up the same volume as the water. But since we all know they don't float, they have to weigh more than water with the same given volume. Density=weight/volume. Things that sink in water has a higher density than water, i.e. weight more with the same volume. Get it?

 

[herman]

Lol

 

[samster]

thats what i believed tocks should be heavier lols but someone fed me with roCKs weight less then water -=D anyhows thats not the problem right nows so how bout a rockless tank? -=X would the stand hold then? lols anyways any body seen any tanks larger then 200 gallons with customs stands that are all constructed outta ply?

 

[herman]

HEY NO WATER YET??? Ply is fine dude!!! When consrtucted correctly its very strong.

 

[joseney21]

plywood is fine, search it on RF and you'll find a few threads detailing how to build a stand using it. double up on the plywood if you want, but definately stay away from the 2x's (it's incredible how much space they take up, and how ugly they make a stand look).

 

[jcurry]

The lower sketch is better than the top one. You can use plywood if you glue it together. The reason I suggested 2x4 or even 1x3s is that they are cheaper than sheets of plywood and easier to work with. Glue the plywood sheets together with "Gorilla Glue". It's a polyureathane glue that is waterproof and very strong. The horizontal blue line is the key to the proper support. Make it continuous from one end to the other and have the center post support the middle of the new plywood beam and you should be fine.

The reason everyone is getting on you is because no one wants to see anything bad happen. By the time your done stocking the tank you could have over $10K invested. That's a big loss that can be avoided with about $50 in wood and a few hours.

 

[samster]

i have 2 piece of ply glued together on each side with wood glue and nailed together -=) the back is 3/4 ply and 3" strips of ply pulling it agaisnt each other to make it semi 2 piece tought it woulda saved me about 50$ for that piece of ply and about the foam thought how thick of the constructions foam would i need on the top ply under the tank? thanks guys

i am goin to run that *blue* horozital piece, thats wahts going to cover the foamin on the botton -=) like i was tellin everyone i wasn't done with the stand yet but everyone jsut thought i was going to fill it up lols its just i had no where to put the tank so i just placed it on top of the stand =D hmm i dind't use gorilla glue i should try that next time i've always used elmers wood glue and it was fine but gorilla glue sounds deisel lol just like gorilla hair

 

[samster]

update- Process of staining, filled and salted ro/di water, Sand and base rock threw in canopy in place